In the Long Run

I left my car at a windshield repair shop on my way to work this morning, and told the technician I could be back in about 3 hours.

He was very efficient and polite. “No problem. We’ll have your windshield chip repaired in about 45 minutes.” He sounded quite confident for having never even seen the damage.

Indeed, when I returned this afternoon, my car was parked in what was undoubtedly the “completed jobs” parking area. I went into the office to collect my key. As I was paying for the work, I noticed a big sign in the repair bay area, describing the types of chips, or dings: bullseye, star, half moon, and combination.

Trying to make pleasant conversation, and out of curiosity, I asked what type of chip my windshield had had. Mike was still very efficient and polite, although not overly congenial. “It was a star with two tails. That will be $47.70.”

Back in my car, I surveyed the work. I frowned a little as I noted that I could definitely still see where the chip had been. The original damage had been a mere ¼ inch or so big, and I had expected the repair to be less visible. It actually looked bigger than the original ding. In fact the blemish now looked more like a half-moon/star combination! And then I counted, not just two, but FIVE tails radiating out from the star!

I guess I’ll play the glad game. I’m glad that the chip is down low where it isn’t in my sightline, and I’m glad that the repair has a lifetime guarantee. I’ll just live with my 5-tailed shooting star.

Posted by Cyppy at 9:45 PM